Why Laws Aren’t Protecting Your Bitcoin

As the gentle light breaks through the opening in your curtain, your eyes slowly open as another beautiful morning begins. You slowly get out of bed, grabbing your phone as you make your way to the kitchen to drink your morning coffee.

You begin the process of getting that morning cup of goodness prepared, and look at your Facebook feed and notice an article discussing that Bitcoin has had another huge rise. You smile to yourself as you think about how wise you were to have gotten in on the rising trend before it was so popular.

As you finish preparing your coffee, you grab the handle and slowly take a sip as the delicious aroma fills your nostrils. You slowly make your way to go sit down at the table, still looking at your phone and decide to check your Bitcoin wallet to look at your funds available.

Suddenly, a wave of shock and dread envelopes you as the coffee cup slips from your hand and crashes to the ground. Hot liquid flows over your feet from the shattered mug as you just stare at your phone in shock at the empty Bitcoin wallet trying to understand what happened to your cryptocurrency.

Today you will learn about Bitcoin and the lack of protections offered by the laws surrounding this popular cryptocurrency. If you are involved with the online gambling scene, you will want to pay close attention, because this blog may save your financial future.

Why Is My Bitcoin at Risk?

Technology is a constantly evolving force that will continue to develop at a breakneck pace, and those who understand the trends of growth can greatly benefit. One of those lucrative trends is the rise of cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin.

Those who got in at the beginning of this popular technological marvel are smiling ear to ear with their intelligent investments, because the currency continues to be on a steady upward trend. Although it is becoming more well known in the world, the currency is at risk from a multitude of threats.

From hackers to scams, people must be very cautious where they utilize their digital currency and even where they store it. The internet is a tricky place, and unfortunately for those in the cryptocurrency game, they must be ever vigilant.

Laws Are Foggy

One of the biggest issues in the cryptocurrency market is the fact that laws are trying to play catchup with the ever-evolving market. Remember, the internet is world-wide, and the laws that govern its usage are

Certain countries or regions may accept Bitcoin as a method of payment where others will not and will either outright ban the use of the currency or restrict it. When dealing with a virtual commodity, the value that is placed on it will be based on whether people accept it or not.

For example, most paper money in the world has the value of it backed up by gold. The paper itself does not hold any actual value, but rather represents the gold that gives it value. Cryptocurrency does not have any physical commodity giving it value.

Therefore, some jurisdictions will recognize it as money while others do not, which can get complicated in the cases of theft, because cryptocurrency may be recognized as your property by some, and as nothing by others.

To add to the complication of the laws at hand, who do you even report the crime to? There are no governing bodies or Bitcoin police out there monitoring the world for your currency. If you lose your Bitcoins in most cases by any means, chances are you are out of luck.

Ok, Well My Bitcoin Was Stolen – What Do I Do?

The circumstances in how your Bitcoin was stolen will be a big deal in determining what, if anything, you can do when you are a victim of theft. Victims of cybercrimes are in a different predicament than those who have physical possessions stolen from them.

When you are a victim of crime, in most circumstances, you will go to your local precinct and file a police report indicating what crime has occurred. If your Bitcoin is stolen, where exactly do you intend to file the report?

Local authorities can’t operate outside of their jurisdiction, and more than likely the perpetrator will not be within the same area, let alone the same country, as you. The report would have to go to a much higher jurisdiction, and then if the perpetrator is located, that country would have to cooperate.

This is easier said than done, of course, and there are a lot of people out there taking advantage of the fact there are minimal ramifications for Bitcoin theft. When people find themselves victims of Bitcoin scams, they are more than likely out of luck because it was user error.

However, there is a light at the end of the tunnel if a person got hacked, because that may fall under computer crimes, which makes a small possibility of the theft being pursued. It is a small chance and heavily reliant upon where you live, but at least there is a chance for some people to find justice.

Protecting Your Bitcoin

As the industry grows and becomes more popular, so do the options available to consumers to store their Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies securely. It is important as a consumer that you understand the risks that are out there and take measures to protect yourself against them.

When you are carrying your wallet on your person, you are taking measures to keep your finances out of the hands of pickpockets. It would only make sense that you keep those same funds out of the hands of online predators as well.

You need to determine the best way to keep your virtual currency safely out of the hands of thieves. There are a few options out there that you can utilize to assist in keeping you virtual currency safe and secured.

External Devices

First and foremost, you can keep your Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency stored on an external device so that those online predators cannot access them. It is the same concept as storing any important data away from your computer.

When people are dealing with large amounts of Bitcoin or other forms of cryptocurrency, it could be worthwhile to have a supply of them stored on something that does not get connected to any networks, such as an external hard drive or USB device.

The same problems associated with keeping money under your mattress apply to your cold wallet stored Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.

The same precautions that you would take with an extremely valuable possession would need to occur with the external device. You are not just protecting it from thieves, after all. There are also the risks of flood or fire that you need to be aware of, since it is an electronic device.

External devices have their positives and negatives — while they can protect you from the network risks, you can, therefore, be at risk of physical loss. The physical at least will provide you with a method in which to report any theft to local authorities.

Although having your external hard drive stolen may not, unfortunately, put a value on the data contained within. There is another option that takes safeguarding the external device out of your hands, and that is trusting it with a bank or other institution that provides safety deposit boxes.

Safety deposit boxes are often a viable choice of where to keep an external device because they will provide a proper security atmosphere for the possession. Aside from the bank being robbed and your safety deposit box becoming a target, it will be in good hands.

Safety deposit boxes have an obvious downside in that they are not readily accessible if you want to get your Bitcoin out. When it comes to external storage, you are giving up a bit of the convenience factor of cryptocurrency to opt against network intruders.

E-wallets

E-wallets, which are digital storage devices where you can keep your cryptocurrency online, are another option you have. They can be utilized for quick transactions such as purchases or for uploading into other accounts. Like everything, they have their advantages and problems associated with them.

Advantage-wise, you will have quick access to your online funds where and whenever you want them. After all, the virtual currency survives in the environment that is largely about convenience. If you want to use your Bitcoin and its accepted, you should be able to access it and use it.

With the positives of convenience there comes the risk associated with anything that is online and connected to a network. An e-wallet is susceptible to breaches from outside intruders such as hackers or confidence scams that can trick you into giving up information.

If your information gets out there, you are in for a world of problems, because if someone can gain access to your account or e-wallet, you will have a difficult time recovering any losses. The mixture of external devices and e-wallets have become quite popular.

They are a hybrid mixture of a USB style device that needs to be with you and inserted before you can do any transactions with your account. It is one of the better methods to utilize your cryptocurrency, because it provides viable security with ease of use.

Many of these products carry a hefty price tag, but if you are dealing with a lot of cryptocurrency, then the cost may well be worth it. They are not foolproof, but they provide an added layer of security that is far less costly than having your Bitcoin stolen.

Insurance

One of the options becoming available within the

People want to know that their virtual holdings are safe and secured. That is where the benefits of insurance come into play; it can add a little piece of mind when you are dealing with large amounts of digital currency.

Bitcoin and Gambling

Online gambling has grown at a tremendous rate over the past few years and provides people from all around the world the opportunity to test their fortunes and profit. It is not surprising that many of these gambling sites utilize Bitcoin and another form of cryptocurrencies as a form of payment.

Many people prefer the option because you don’t need to give your credit card or banking information to a gambling site. You will just transfer funds from your e-wallet to the site and be ready to start making wagers in no time.

Who to Trust

Trusting anyone on the internet can be rather difficult, but even more so when there are finances involved. The world of online gambling is filled with many pitfalls, and it is essential that you are dealing with someone that you can trust.

You want to invest with reputable and well-known sites because it is in their best interest to keep happy customers rather than steal initial deposits. After all, there are reasons that gambling sites are reviewed, because you need to do business with people you trust.

It is not only about knowing that the website in question is good for what they owe to the bettors, but also about keeping your digital currency safe in their accounts. Think of a gambling website, in the same manner, you would a bank.

You are trusting the bank to keep your funds safe, and when you go to withdraw funds from your account, you expect it to be there. The same idea applies to your online gambling account, because you would hope that when you go to withdraw funds, they are there.

In most cases, legit sites will have various security measures that they recommend their users take so that their accounts remain uncompromised. After all, it is in their best interest that your funds remain safely tucked in your account so that you can use them to play rather than get them stolen from you.

Wrap Up

Bitcoin and other forms of cryptocurrencies are a very hot commodity within the world today for a good reason. They are incredibly useful and convenient tools that provide a lot of useful features to people when doing their business online.

You cannot rely on laws to protect you, and the only one who is going to secure your Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies is yourself.

Although they provide a lot of conveniences, they still are associated with many risks that people need to deal with daily.

That especially goes when using them for online gambling, because trusting the wrong website can be catastrophic. Remember, you want to do business with gambling sites that are trustworthy and have a good reputation.

Do not forget to follow the security protocols that they have in place, because they are set up for a reason. They have a vested interest in not only keeping you happy, but also securing your funds and account against any possible threats.

Cryptocurrencies are a complicated world, but if you are smart with handling them, you can be on the winning side of the equation. Just remember, do your research and stay connected with people you can trust.